Tutorial: Create a feature layer view | Documentation

Learn how to use ArcGIS portal and scripting APIs to create a feature layer view.

ArcGIS hosted feature layer view item page showing view settings.

Feature layer viewsA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more are created from existing feature services. In this tutorial, you create a feature layer view from an existing feature service by limiting the number of fields available and setting an expression to limit the types of features available. You will also manage the feature layer view settings and display the feature layer using a client-side API.

Prerequisites

You need an accountAn ArcGIS account is an identity with a user type and set of privileges that can access specific ArcGIS products, tools, APIs, services, and resources. The main account types that can be used for development are an ArcGIS Location Platform account, ArcGIS Online account, and ArcGIS Enterprise account. ArcGIS Location Platform and ArcGIS Online accounts are also associated with a subscription.Learn more for ArcGIS Location PlatformArcGIS Location Platform, formerly known as ArcGIS Platform, is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) product that gives developers access to location services, APIs, and tools to build mapping and spatial analysis applications. It is subscription-based and requires an ArcGIS Location Platform account.Learn more, ArcGIS OnlineArcGIS Online is a GIS mapping, analytics, data hosting, and content management software as a service (SaaS) product. It includes applications, tools, APIs, and location services for users and developers. It is subscription-based and requires an ArcGIS Online account.Learn more, or ArcGIS EnterpriseArcGIS Enterprise is a GIS mapping, analytics, data hosting, and content management product that can be hosted on-premise or in a cloud infrastructure. It includes software, applications, tools, APIs, and services for users and developers.Learn more to create hosted data services. If you need an account, go to Get started.

Steps

Download the data

For this workflow, you will use the Santa Monica Parcels dataset.

In your web browser, go to the Santa Monica Parcels item.
Click the Download button to download the zip file locally. Do not unzip this file.

Create a feature layer in a feature service

You can upload data into ArcGIS in supported file types such as CSV, XLS, GeoJSON, shapefile, and File Geodatabase. To create a feature service for the parcel data, import the shapefile by either using a data management toolData management tools are ArcGIS software applications and functionality in portal and ArcGIS Pro that can be used by developers to create, manage, and edit content and data such as web maps, hosted layers, and data services for their applications.Learn more or scripting API.

Follow the steps below to use Data management tools or Scripting APIs:

In your web browser, go to https://location.arcgis.com, and sign in with your ArcGIS Location Platform accountAn ArcGIS Location Platform account, formerly known as an ArcGIS Developer account, is an identity associated with an ArcGIS Location Platform subscription.Learn more. In the ArcGIS Location PlatformArcGIS Location Platform, formerly known as ArcGIS Platform, is a Platform as a Service (PaaS) product that gives developers access to location services, APIs, and tools to build mapping and spatial analysis applications. It is subscription-based and requires an ArcGIS Location Platform account.Learn more dashboard, click My portal to go to your portal.

In the top navigation bar, click Content.
Click New item. To upload the Santa Monica Parcels shapefile, you can either:
- Drag and drop the file.
- Or, click Your device and navigate to the file path.
Select Add Santa Monica Parcels.zip to publish the file as a hosted feature layerA hosted feature layer is a hosted layer (item) in a portal that is used to manage the properties and settings of a spatially-enabled feature layer in a feature service.Learn more.
Set the following information in the item details pane:
- Title: Santa Monica Parcels
- Tags: Santa Monica Parcels.
- Summary: Parcels in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Click Next to create the new feature layerA feature layer (client-side) is a data layer that can access and display features from a feature service that has the same type of geometry and attribute fields.Learn more and feature serviceA feature service is a data service that provides access to spatial and non-spatial data in feature layers, feature layer views, and tables.Learn more.

In your web browser, go to ArcGIS.com and sign in to your portalArcGIS portal, also known as a portal, is a website with applications and tools that can be used to create, manage, access, and share geospatial content and data. It supports security and authentication, developer credentials, content and data service management, user and group management, and site administration. A portal can be hosted in Esri's infrastructure or your own infrastructure.Learn more with your ArcGIS Online accountAn ArcGIS Online account, also known as an ArcGIS Organization account, is an identity associated with an ArcGIS Online subscription. It can be used to access ArcGIS tools and develop applications with ArcGIS location services for an organization.Learn more.

In the top navigation bar, click Content.
Click New item. To upload the Santa Monica Parcels shapefile, you can either:
- Drag and drop the file.
- Or, click Your device and navigate to the file path.
Select Add Santa Monica Parcels.zip to publish the file as a hosted feature layerA hosted feature layer is a hosted layer (item) in a portal that is used to manage the properties and settings of a spatially-enabled feature layer in a feature service.Learn more.
Set the following information in the item details pane:
- Title: Santa Monica Parcels
- Tags: Santa Monica Parcels.
- Summary: Parcels in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Click Next to create the new feature layerA feature layer (client-side) is a data layer that can access and display features from a feature service that has the same type of geometry and attribute fields.Learn more and feature serviceA feature service is a data service that provides access to spatial and non-spatial data in feature layers, feature layer views, and tables.Learn more.

In your web browser, go to your ArcGIS EnterpriseArcGIS Enterprise is a GIS mapping, analytics, data hosting, and content management product that can be hosted on-premise or in a cloud infrastructure. It includes software, applications, tools, APIs, and services for users and developers.Learn more portal and sign in to your portal with your ArcGIS Enterprise accountAn ArcGIS Enterprise account is an identity for an instance of ArcGIS Enterprise. It can be used to access ArcGIS Enterprise tools, applications, and services, and to develop applications.Learn more.

In the top navigation bar, click Content.
Click New item. To upload the Santa Monica Parcels shapefile, you can either:
- Drag and drop the file.
- Or, click Your device and navigate to the file path.
Select Add Santa Monica Parcels.zip to publish the file as a hosted feature layerA hosted feature layer is a hosted layer (item) in a portal that is used to manage the properties and settings of a spatially-enabled feature layer in a feature service.Learn more.
Set the following information in the item details pane:
- Title: Santa Monica Parcels
- Tags: Santa Monica Parcels.
- Summary: Parcels in the Santa Monica Mountains.
Click Next to create the new feature layerA feature layer (client-side) is a data layer that can access and display features from a feature service that has the same type of geometry and attribute fields.Learn more and feature serviceA feature service is a data service that provides access to spatial and non-spatial data in feature layers, feature layer views, and tables.Learn more.

You can use ArcGIS ProArcGIS Pro is a professional desktop GIS application that can explore, visualize, analyze, and manage 2D and 3D data.Learn more to import shapefile data.

Unzip the Santa Monica parcels zip file.
- The zip file contains the Parcels_Public.shp file.
Launch ArcGIS Pro.
- Create a new map project.
- A map with World Topographic Map and World Hillshade basemap layers will be created.
In the Map ribbon, click on Add Data > Data and select Parcels_Public.shp file.

The Parcels_Public.shp file is added as a feature layer to the map.

Publish as web layer

Before you can share the feature layer as a hosted feature layer, you will need to enable Allow assignment of unique numeric IDs for sharing web layers option. By default, this option is not enabled. Enabling this option will allow you to assign static IDs to feature layers in your project.

In the Contents pane, right-click the Map > Properties
In the General section, enable Allow assignment of unique numeric IDs for sharing web layers.

With that option enabled, you can now publish the Santa Monica Parcels polygon feature layer as a hosted feature layer.

Right-click on feature layer and click Sharing > Share as Web Layer.
- The Share As Web Layer pane will be displayed.
Set the following required information in the General tab:
- Name: Santa Monica Parcels
- Summary: Parcels in the Santa Monica Mountains
- Tags: Santa Monica Parcels
- Layer Type: Feature
- Set a location in your organization in Location
Click Analyze
- Any errors or warnings during the analyze process will be displayed in the Messages tab.
Click Publish

A success message will be displayed with Manage the web layer link allowing you to visit the item page details of the hosted feature layer.

Import the required libraries.
Implement authentication.
Create and publish a portal item.
Handle the results.

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# local path to shapefile zip file
input_file_path = str(
    Path(__file__).parent / "Santa_Monica_Public_Parcels.zip"
)

# add the zip file as an item to portal
shp_item = portal.content.add(
    {
        "title": "Santa Monica Public Parcels",
        "description": "Santa Monica public parcels",
        "tags": "Santa, Monica, public, parcels",
        "type": "Shapefile",
    },
    input_file_path,
)

# publish the item to create a hosted featurelayer
shp_service = shp_item.publish(None)

print(f"New item id : {shp_service.id, }, url: {shp_service.layers[0].url}")

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  // publish parameters
  // https://developers.arcgis.com/rest/users-groups-and-items/publish-item.htm#ESRI_SECTION1_1016F32E313240D38E8CF741BDBC0BE8
  const publishParams = {
    name: 'Santa Monica parcels',
    maxRecordCount: 2000,
    hasStaticData: true,
    layerInfo: { capabilities: 'Query' },
  };

  // create item
  const zipItem = await createItem({
    authentication: auth,
    item: {
      title: 'Santa Monica parcels',
      description: 'Santa Monica parcels',
      tags: 'Santa, Monica, parcels',
      type: 'Shapefile',
    },
    file: f,
  });

  // execute publish operation
  const publishedService = await request(publishURL, {
    authentication: auth,
    params: {
      itemid: zipItem.id,
      filetype: 'shapefile',
      publishParameters: publishParams,
    },
  });

  // handle results
  console.log('New service created: ');
  publishedService.services.forEach((s) => {
    console.log(`\tid: ${s.serviceItemId} \n\turl:${s.serviceurl}`);
  });
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Create the feature layer view

To create a hosted feature layer viewA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more from a feature serviceA feature service is a data service that provides access to spatial and non-spatial data in feature layers, feature layer views, and tables.Learn more, you can use data management toolsData management tools are ArcGIS software applications and functionality in portal and ArcGIS Pro that can be used by developers to create, manage, and edit content and data such as web maps, hosted layers, and data services for their applications.Learn more or scripting APIs. Use a tool or API to create a view layer that contains only commercial parcels.

Follow the steps below to use Data management tools or Scripting APIs:

In ArcGIS portal, use the item page to create a view layer.

In the source feature layer item page, click Create View Layer > View layer.
In the Create View Layer dialog, under choose layers, ensure your layer is checked and click Next.

ArcGIS portal Create View Layer dialog displaying available layers to include in the view.

In Included layers, click on the layer, to define the fields and filters.
Click Add Filter > + Add expression.
In the expression dialog, in the first dropdown, select usetype. In the second dropdown, select is and in the last dropdown select Commercial.

ArcGIS portal Add Expression dialog displaying filter settings for the view layer.

Click the back arrow, under Layer definitions click Fields > Select fields.
Select the following fields: situsfulla, usetype, usedescrip. Uncheck all the remaining fields.
Click Done.
Click the back arrow and click Next to open the Create view tab.
In the Create pane, Set the following parameters:
- Title: Santa Monica commercial parcels view
- Tags: view, public, parcels, santa, monica, commercial, tutorial
- Summary: Feature layer view representing commercial parcels in Santa Monica, CA
Click Create. Once the view is created you will be redirected to the item pageAn item page is a web page in ArcGIS Online or the developer dashboard used to access and manage the properties for an item and the content it references such as a web map, hosted layer, or file.Learn more of the new feature layer viewA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more.
Click the Data tab. You should see only the four fields you used in the expression.
Click the Visualization tab. Only features with "usetype"='Commercial' should display.

In ArcGIS portal, use the item page to create a view layer.

In the source feature layer item page, click Create View Layer > View layer.
In the Create View Layer dialog, under choose layers, ensure your layer is checked and click Next.

In Included layers, click on the layer, to define the fields and filters.
Click Add Filter > + Add expression.
In the expression dialog, in the first dropdown, select usetype. In the second dropdown, select is and in the last dropdown select Commercial.

Click the back arrow, under Layer definitions click Fields > Select fields.
Select the following fields: situsfulla, usetype, usedescrip. Uncheck all the remaining fields.
Click Done.
Click the back arrow and click Next to open the Create view tab.
In the Create pane, Set the following parameters:
- Title: Santa Monica commercial parcels view
- Tags: view, public, parcels, santa, monica, commercial, tutorial
- Summary: Feature layer view representing commercial parcels in Santa Monica, CA
Click Create. Once the view is created you will be redirected to the item pageAn item page is a web page in ArcGIS Online or the developer dashboard used to access and manage the properties for an item and the content it references such as a web map, hosted layer, or file.Learn more of the new feature layer viewA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more.
Click the Data tab. You should see only the four fields you used in the expression.
Click the Visualization tab. Only features with "usetype"='Commercial' should display.

In your ArcGIS Enterprise portal, use the item page to create a view layer.

In the source feature layer item page, click Create View Layer > View layer.
In the Create View Layer dialog, under choose layers, ensure your layer is checked and click Next.

In Included layers, click on the layer, to define the fields and filters.
Click Add Filter > + Add expression.
In the expression dialog, in the first dropdown, select usetype. In the second dropdown, select is and in the last dropdown select Commercial.

Click the back arrow, under Layer definitions click Fields > Select fields.
Select the following fields: situsfulla, usetype, usedescrip. Uncheck all the remaining fields.
Click Done.
Click the back arrow and click Next to open the Create view tab.
In the Create pane, Set the following parameters:
- Title: Santa Monica commercial parcels view
- Tags: view, public, parcels, santa, monica, commercial, tutorial
- Summary: Feature layer view representing commercial parcels in Santa Monica, CA
Click Create. Once the view is created you will be redirected to the item pageAn item page is a web page in ArcGIS Online or the developer dashboard used to access and manage the properties for an item and the content it references such as a web map, hosted layer, or file.Learn more of the new feature layer viewA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more.
Click the Data tab. You should see only the four fields you used in the expression.
Click the Visualization tab. Only features with "usetype"='Commercial' should display.

Import the required libraries.
Implement authentication.
Create and publish a portal item.
Handle the results.

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# Create the view layer
view_item = flc.manager.create_view(name="Santa monica commercial parcels (view)")

# reduce the number of fields included in the view
# Get the current field list
view_flds = view_item.layers[0].properties.fields

# Set only the fields we want to visible, also include OID
vis_flds = [
    {"name": f"{f.name}", "visible": True}
    if f.name in ["apn", "situsfulla", "usetype", "usedescrip"]
    or f.type == "esriFieldTypeOID"
    else {"name": f"{f.name}", "visible": False}
    for f in view_flds
]

layer_def = {"viewDefinitionQuery": "usetype = 'Commercial'", "fields": vis_flds}

view_item.layers[0].manager.update_definition(layer_def)

print(f"Feature layer view created\n\t ItemID : {view_item.id}\n\t URL:{view_item.url}")

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  // create the view service
  const viewService = await createFeatureService({
    authentication: auth,
    item: viewServiceParams,
    params: {
      isView: "true",
      outputType: "featureService",
    },
  })

  // add the source layer def to the new view service
  const addLayer = await addToServiceDefinition(viewService.serviceurl, {
    authentication: auth,
    layers: [srcLayerInfo],
  })

  // Add filter expression and limit field visibility

  // apply the expression and fields
  const addFilters = await updateServiceDefinition(
    `${viewService.serviceurl}/0`,
    {
      authentication: auth,
      updateDefinition: {
        viewDefinitionQuery: "usetype = 'Commercial'",
        fields: visFields,
      },
    }
  )

  console.log("view creation complete")

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You now have a feature layer viewA feature layer view, also known as a view, is a feature layer that only exposes a subset of the fields and data available in an existing feature layer (source).Learn more hosted in your portal. You can access the view layer with its service URL or IDAn item ID is a unique identifier representing a single item stored, managed, and accessed in a portal, such as a web map, hosted layer, or file.Learn more in your applications. To manage your hosted layerA hosted layer is an item in a portal that contains the properties and settings for a hosted data service or a layer in a hosted data service.Learn more (item) properties and capabilities, visit the Manage a feature layer tutorial.